Even though it is hard to see much value in figures which look at a state four years from now, IDC’s recent release makes for an interesting “sentiment monitor”.
Mobile Business Briefing shares the following chart:
What do you think?
Sep 092010
Apple’s recently-released iPod touch 4G has the same high-resolution display found on the iPhone 4G, and furthermore adds a (low-res) camera to the mix.
iFixit has recently torn down the device, and presents the following comparison table:
Better:
* Lighter and thinner
* More durable metal back panel (we’ve seen many broken glass iPhone 4 rear panels)
* Half the price at only $229!
Worse:
* Only 256 MB RAM
* No GPS
* Harder to disassemble
* No vibrator
* John Gruber has postulated that the iPod Touch does not have an IPS display. We are still working to verify this, and will post comparison photos soon.
Not much to add here…
When it comes to Apple products, the folks at iFixit always tend to be an extremely reliable source of all kinds of hardware-related info.
iFixit now tore an iPod touch 4G down, and found the following interesting things:
* This is the easiest iPod Touch we’ve ever cracked open — a bit of glue and two tabs hold the front panel in place. We hoped that the insides would continue to be repair-friendly, but then found that the front glass and LCD panel were permanently fused together. This will prevent dust from getting beneath the glass, but unfortunately will also make repair more expensive.
* Like all other revisions of the iPod Touch, the battery is soldered to the logic board. This isn’t a surprise given the slim form factor of the iPod, but we wish Apple would make battery replacement easier, especially on a Touch that is now easier to open.
* Apple did add more space between the battery’s three solder points compared to the 3rd Gen Touch. This should make the soldering job a little easier when replacing the battery, as there’s less chance of accidentally bridging the contacts.
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* For those of you who are wondering, there’s no way the iPhone 4′s rear camera can be installed in the Touch.
* In a first for the iPod Touch line, the headphone jack is not soldered to the logic board. There’s also a liquid damage indicator on the bottom of the headphone jack, so don’t use your Touch to stir the coffee.
Find out more via the URL below:
http://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/iPod-Touch-4th-Generation-Teardown/3562/1
Sep 072010
So far, iOS 4 is the “latest and greatest” iPhone operating system known to the common man on the street. Developers have had access to more advanced builds for some time; but these were limited to private betas.
Engadget now brings us the two images below. They were shot at an official Apple press event:
Not much to add here…
Sep 062010
This explains why RIM wasn’t interested in creating Documents To Go for webOS – the boys were on the verge of being absorbed by RIM.
Mobile Apps Briefing reports the following:
Research In Motion (RIM) is rumoured to have acquired DataViz for US$50 million, developers of a document viewing application that has been preloaded on BlackBerrys for the last few years. A report from IntoMobile notes that the price is small enough to not require public disclosure.
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Even though Dataviz itself has not stated anything re the matter, the decision makes good sense. Keep in mind that Microsoft has its own Office Suite, whereas Symbian is firmly dominated by QuickOffice. Furthermore, MobiSystems is making good progress in Android – leaving DataViz with iPhone and BlackBerry.
Stay tuned for an official confirmation if we ever get one…
Sep 062010
Don’t ask me what is going on here – now that Adobe itself has given up on Flash for the iPhone, Motorola now takes the ball.
Ed Hardy from BrightHand has found the following ad in the New York Times:
Not much to add here…
When HandMark bought up AstraWare about three years ago, industry pundits left and right wondered where the relatively unknown company had the cash from to buy the well-known publisher.
Questions about the deal were always haughtily rebuffed at tradeshows – fortunately, the 3GSMA’s Mobile Apps Briefing sheds some light onto the company in a recent editorial.
They describe their activities as following:
“The key for Handmark is to continue to find the right content and partners in order to build a large mobile audience. We have great capabilities in developing, distributing, monetising and supporting ongoing innovation. When combined with a great partner, this is a great recipe for success.”
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“We chose to spin off Astraware to allow them to creatively focus on delivering to their core business of delivering entertaining mobile games. While it continues to be an attractive business, Handmark is focused on being the leader in the mobile application marketplace. It was a strategic move to provide more focus to both companies,” Conway says.
In case you want to find out more, hit the URL below:
http://www.mobilebusinessbriefing.com/apps/article/handmark-making-media-mobile
In the mobile industry, Apple’s demands for an exclusivity on the iPhone have long been described as “totally unreasonable” – as very few carriers have actually gone exclusive, there must be at least some truth to that.
The Wall Street Journal reports the following:
Deutsche Telekom AG will lose exclusivity for Apple Inc.’s iPhone in Germany ahead of the holiday shopping season, bringing the number of providers that sell the device in the country to three, people familiar with the matter said.
Vodafone Group PLC and Telefónica SA’s O2 will sell the iPhone in addition to Deutsche Telekom, the people said Thursday.
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Given that T-Mobile was one of the first carriers to get the iPhone after AT&T, let’s see how much longer their exclusivity will last…
In Austria and Germany, independant retailers have long bundled all kinds of crap to (overpriced) phone contracts.
My special friends at T-Mobile Austria have now taken this one step further. They teamed up with Microsoft and offer a free license of Office 2010 with a mobile internet contract.
The contract in question will run for 24 months, gives you 15GB of traffic and an USB modem for 15 Euros a In Austria and Germany, independant retailers have long bundled all kinds of crap to (overpriced) phone contracts.
My special friends at T-Mobile Austria have now taken this one step further. They teamed up with Microsoft and offer a free license of Office 2010 with a mobile internet contract.
The contract in question will run for 24 months, gives you 15GB of traffic and an USB modem for 15 Euros a month. The Home and Student license remains your property afterwards.
IMHO, Microsoft does this mainly to fight piracy – as almost all Austrian carriers charge an Euro for the GB, the margin for Redmond cant be too large…month. The Home and Student license remains your property afterwards.
IMHO, Microsoft does this mainly to fight piracy – as almost all Austrian carriers charge an Euro for the GB, the margin for Redmond cant be too large…
If you have app stores, you have astroturfing – this age-old rule has been valid ever since the first ESD opened its store and added a rating system.
Unfortunately, the recent FCC rules for online news services also affect astroturfers. The New York Times (a questionable source for mobile, but usually OK on legal matters) now reports that the FCC has settled a case against a PR firm which openly admitted to writing reviews for its clients:
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The Federal Trade Commission said on Thursday that a California marketing company had settled charges that it engaged in deceptive advertising by having its employees write and post positive reviews of clients’ games in the Apple iTunes Store, without disclosing that they were being paid to do so.
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Even though small-scale cases of astroturfing are unlikely to be noticed, better move your server to Panama if you plan larger campaigns…
